Liam Neeson has come under fire from animal rights group Peta after claiming he ate wolf meat to prepare for his role in the action thriller The Grey. The organisation is calling for a boycott of the film based on Neeson's comments during a press conference and separate claims that director Joe Carnahan ordered wolf carcasses to be used during the making of the movie. The Grey sees the Ballymena-born actor as the leader of a group of oil workers being hunted down by a pack of wolves after surviving a plane crash in Alaska.

Neeson recently told reporters he had tucked in alongside other cast members after Carnahan asked for wolf stew to be prepared on set to help them get into character. "It was very gamey," said the Oscar-nominated actor. "But I'm Irish, so I'm used to odd stews. I can take it. Just throw a lot of carrots and onions in there and I'll call it dinner." Unlike some colleagues who were apparently sick, Neeson said that he had been back for seconds.

"Neeson's stance on kindness to animals is sorely out of step with the rest of the world," said Peta in a statement, insisting that wolves were in fact shy beasts unlikely to target humans rather than the predatory creatures seen in The Grey. The statement added: "Don't just shy away. Run away from The Grey."

Peta also criticised Carnahan for allegedly ordering wolf carcasses from a trapper for use in the film. "Many animals caught in traps chew off their own limbs in order to escape," said spokeswoman Jane Dollinger. "These animals go on to die of gangrene or other secondary infections, sometimes leaving nursing puppies abandoned to fend for themselves."

It is not clear whether any wolves were really killed during the making of The Grey, or whether Neeson and Carnahan are guilty only of making glib comments to that effect. Neither has yet made any public comment on Peta's statement. Another unlikely recent story linked to comments made by the Irish actor suggested he was about to convert to Islam.